


Tree at the End of the World (Part 1)

by notaverse



Series: Phoenix Down [12]
Category: EXO (Band)
Genre: Alternate Universe - Fantasy, Gen, M/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2014-09-27
Updated: 2014-09-27
Packaged: 2018-02-18 23:42:16
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 3
Words: 17,668
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/2366315
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/notaverse/pseuds/notaverse
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Kris and Jongdae get shiny new toys (although Jongdae pays a far higher price for his than he'd like), and coming face to face with a piece of his past puts Jongin's future at risk. (Alternatively: ZITAO HAS THE COOLEST SUMMON SEQUENCE EVER AND HE WANTS YOU ALL TO KNOW IT)</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> **Title:** Tree at the End of the World (Part 1)  
>  **Fandom:** EXO (sort of fused with Final Fantasy VII, plus some geography from FFVIII)  
>  **Series:** Phoenix Down (#12)  
>  **Rating:** PG-13  
>  **Genre:** AU, crossover (sort of)  
>  **Disclaimer:** Not mine, damnit. Especially not Shera, who is from FFVII.
> 
> **A/N:** And it's back to the plot. Chronologically-speaking, this takes place straight after [8\. Driving Force](http://archiveofourown.org/works/1087229), and would be the fic that finishes the game. Er, the _series_. However, Chanyeol's POV section was getting ridiculously long, and there's a lukai sidequest that didn't really go in the middle of all this, so I've split it out into more sensible chunks. Please note this one has three chapters, one for each POV (Kris, Jongdae, Jongin).
> 
> As always, many thanks to MC for being a fantastic beta. <3

Kris has never felt so free. Soaring above the treetops, wings spread to their fullest extent and long black tail trailing behind him, he watches his friends down on the ground below. They all seem so tiny, not remotely like the larger-than-life characters he's come to know. In human form he's the tallest, if not by much, but as a dragon he's enormous, his straight, scaled back long and broad enough for them to ride.

He has no rider now. He can dive as steeply as he dares, can fly double inside-out loops if the fancy takes him. He's not great at aerial stunts but with practice - and much goodnatured teasing from his friends when he narrowly misses the trees, the houses, and anything else he could potentially hit - he's improving. They all are, little by little, working hard to master their powers for the battle that lies ahead.

They live together now, separated into small groups who reside in a cluster of nearby houses. Kris's roommate, Yixing, transforms too, though his gentle unicorn uses healing magic while Kris's ferocious dragon is designed to attack. They're a good match - a dragon might be immune to his own flame but he can still stub his claws in an awkward landing, and Kris has had more than a few of those. There's no manual for instructing dragons in how to fly, any more than there's one to teach Jongin to teleport, or Jongdae to throw lightning bolts. Trial and error can be a harsh teacher.

That they sometimes experiment on each other doesn't help with the risk of injuries.

"Don't change back yet," Lu Han says when Kris comes in for a landing. "I want to try lifting you again."

Lu Han's been using his telekinesis on anything that's not nailed down, working on increasing the mass and number of objects he can handle, but so far he hasn't had much luck budging Kris in dragon form. (Yixing the unicorn, on the other hand, has been flown gracefully across the river.) Kris can't refuse unless he changes back to say so - in this shape he's limited to a range of growls and roars, regardless of how carefully he tries to shape his words. Mostly, he's just relieved not to be breathing fire every time he opens his mouth.

He settles down on the grass, tucking in his wings and curling his tail around his body until he's as small as he can get without transforming, then signals Lu Han with a low rumble that it's okay to try moving him. Their experiments so far haven't managed to raise Kris more than an inch off the ground, so he's not _too_ worried that Lu Han will drop him from a painful height.

Then again, this is Lu Han, and Kris doesn't like the evil twist to his grin.

"Don't glare at me," Lu Han says. Kris has no idea if his expression even constitutes glaring, since there's no mirror large enough for him to view himself in this form. "I promise not to set you down in the stinging nettles."

Kris doubts whether Lu Han can manoeuvre him anywhere near the nettles in the first place, but he's evidently been practising because Kris suddenly finds himself hovering six feet above the grass, wings still at rest, body held up by Lu Han's power alone. He's not used to holding still in mid-air. His first instinct is to flap his wings to keep himself from dropping and it takes all the control he can muster to keep steady. Any movement now will bowl Lu Han over with the breeze and then Kris will fall. Not far, but he'll fall all the same.

The strain shows in Lu Han's contorted face. He's stubborn enough to hold out for as long as he can, though - teeth clenched tight, hands balled into fists as he holds them out in front of him, willing his power to support Kris. Pride surges through Kris with a flame fiercer than any he's ever produced. His friends are amazing. So strong, so hardworking. So brave and determined, even though they know they may not survive. He couldn't ask for better.

The others are training too. Jongin winks in and out of his vision, making a game of his teleportation practice with Baekhyun, who tries to predict where Jongin will materialise next in order to throw a beam of light his way. Over by the trees, Kyungsoo is calling up giant walls of earth to shield against Minseok's shards of ice. Most of the others are inside, being healed by Yixing or taking their turns to eat and rest.

But not all of them. As Lu Han finally gives in and lowers Kris slowly to the ground, someone else is coming in to land. A giant bird of fire, their team's phoenix, with orange flames streaking through the sky as he draws himself together, wings folding towards his body, tail fading in a shower of sparks before he can set the grass ablaze. Kris shifts quickly back to his human shape to give him more room, and to be able to lend a steadying arm if required. The phoenix is more graceful than the man, who finds enormous wings to be less of a hindrance than his long, thin legs.

Flaming feathers give way to frizzy blond hair and a plain black tracksuit, fresh and lacking in scorch marks despite being burned up by the transformation. It's always that way when they change forms. The last thing to go is the fire lingering in the eyes, a fierce orange inferno that's gradually smothered by the return of human flesh, and when that fades the phoenix burns no more. He's safe to touch, then, and he accepts Kris's proffered hand with an easy, comfortable grin, trusting Kris to help him find his balance on solid ground. Kris always does. Although some of the others are nearly a match for them in height they're the two tallest: the group's twin towers of support.

Kris appreciates that. He tries not to lean on anyone else but when he does, he prefers it to be someone he can't crush.

As Baekhyun comes running up to them Kris opens his mouth to speak, but a sudden blow to the side of his head knocks all words from his mind...

"Sorry about that," Jongdae says, tone more terse than apologetic as he forces the van back on course. "Tight corner. Everyone okay?"

Kris blinks to clear away the sleep, eventually realising that the reason his head stings is that he's knocked it against the window during a turn. "Yeah," he mumbles thickly, reaching for his water bottle to help wake him up, and the two in the back chime in with their agreement.

He wonders how long he's been asleep. They'd left Nibelheim after lunch - or rather, after finally managing to pick up something for lunch from the only place in town where people weren't ignoring them. Kris suspects the only reason they got served in the bakery was because the young shopgirl inside was trying to flirt with Jongdae, but he'd been too distracted to notice, not reacting even when she winked at him and slipped an extra pastry in his bag.

Jongdae hadn't been paying full attention since he'd agreed to drive them to Rocket Town, really, and Kris had hoped, as Jongdae had started the engine, that he wasn't too distracted to drive. As willing as Kris had been to take the wheel, he wasn't sure he fancied trying to steer the van through Mt. Nibel, the mountain looming over the town, dark and foreboding, doing its best to discourage anyone from approaching.

"We have to drive through that?" Jongin had said, looking up in dismay as Jongdae slowly guided the van out the north side of Nibelheim. "It looks like it wants to crush us. Can we go around?"

"Nope." Jongdae had smiled tightly at the road ahead. "You're lucky they've widened the paths enough to drive on - my parents used to make the trip on foot. I don't recommend looking down."

Jongin's not the one who's afraid of heights but it's sound advice for all of them. Kris remembers the chocobos in the back starting to squawk as they'd begun the climb towards the skies - Ace was the loudest; Kris would know his distinctive ' _Wark!_ ' anywhere - and now he's awake enough to see where they're going, he tries to keep his focus on what lies before him, ignoring the temptation to look out the side window. He knows he won't like what he sees.

Not that the view ahead is any better. The mountain slopes are so dark as to be almost black, concealing even darker crevices, crannies where pairs of yellow and red lights glint at them from the shadows. Kris fervently hopes they belong to animals. Shy, retiring animals who are merely curious about the noise from the engine, and mean them no harm. The last thing he wants to do is get into a fight with monsters on a mountain path so narrow that if Jongdae makes one mistake on a bend, they risk losing a wheel over the edge.

And there are more than enough bends to make Kris extremely glad he'd thought better of offering to drive. The path twists and turns around tall, curving horns of solid rock, sharp talons curling into giant fists. At least there's no other traffic; there's nowhere safe for them to pull over. This is hardly a route anyone would drive if they didn't absolutely have to.

Kris takes a swig from his bottle, washing away the sleep from his voice. "How long was I out?"

"Only about half an hour," Yixing says. "Were you dreaming? You reached out your hand just before you woke up."

"Yeah, I saw..." Kris reaches for the name in vain. He knows it's locked inside his head somewhere, waiting to be released by a dream. "I saw our missing phoenix."

There's a mutter from the backseat, followed by a louder, sharper warning from Jongin, and Kris turns around to see him slumping sheepishly against the side of the van.

"Lu Han was going to come out," Jongin explains. "I told him it probably wasn't a good idea since we're moving."

"Don't let him," Jongdae says. "I'm having enough trouble keeping us on the road without people randomly popping up in the backseat."

"He won't," Jongin rushes to assure them all. "But he wants to know everything you saw. No one else has remembered anything about the phoenix guy."

Whatever Jongin knows, Lu Han ends up knowing one way or another, so Kris describes his dream, about how they were all training to use their powers. Jongin laughs at the part about Lu Han's ugly expressions.

"And we were all there?" Yixing asks.

"I think so." Kris hadn't seen everyone, but it had felt _right_ , that all twelve of them had been there. No one missing. Together, where they belonged. "I couldn't see you, but I knew you were there. All of us, and our Summons, and Suho, and Sehun, and..." He breaks off with a frustrated shrug.

"I'm sure his name will come to you eventually," Yixing says. "Or to one of us. How did he seem?"

"Familiar?" It's not quite the word Kris is looking for but it'll have to do until he figures out a better way to describe the comfortable warmth that settles on him when he remembers how the phoenix had grinned at him, taking his hand without the slightest hesitation. He's found more than the last of their number: he's found a missing piece of himself. "I think...we knew each other well. It felt like we did."

"Lu Han was dreaming about me long before he met me," Jongin volunteers shyly; Kris doesn't have to turn around to know he's blushing. He can guess what kind of dreams Jongin's talking about.

"This wasn't like that," Kris says. "Not like...a lover." Not that he's had much experience on that front, but he's seen what Jongin and Lu Han share, and he doesn't remember anything that even comes close. He's certain he'd know. "More like..." A brother? A partner? He gives up his search for a suitable word, shaking his head. "I don't know. He wasn't even in the dream for very long."

He gives them as much detail as he can recall. It's a welcome distraction from the scenery, which grows ever more disturbing as they ascend, and Jongdae's gaze never wavers. Kris wonders if they'll make it through the mountains by nightfall. Driving up here in the afternoon is bad enough; it'll be downright perilous at night.

"Do you think we'll-" he starts to ask Jongdae, but the sight of a purple monster with far too many eyes, waving spindly tentacles right where they want to be driving, is enough to make him forget the end of his sentence.

"Are those supposed to be extra-large ears?" Yixing speculates, peering through from the back.

"That's a Twin Brain," Jongdae says. "Trust me, those aren't ears. Brace yourselves."

Kris grabs the armrest, assuming Jongdae's about to slam on the brakes, but they don't stop. They don't even slow down.

There's a meaty thump from the front of the van, and the Twin Brain goes flying off the edge of the mountain.

"What?" Jongdae says, when they all stare at him in silence. "I wasn't stopping to fight it. There's nowhere to park."

He has a point. Stopping anywhere on Mt. Nibel before they absolutely have to is asking for trouble, and they've got enough of that already. Kris just hopes they don't run into anything larger than the van - Jongdae's liable to try to knock it off the mountain, regardless.

"Do you think we'll make over the mountains before dark?" Kris tries again, though so little light is making it through the van's windows that it might as well be night already.

"We're...not exactly going over," Jongdae says. "There's an old factory inside Mt. Nibel, which is why anyone bothered to work on improving the paths in the first place. It shut down a few years ago but the route's still open, and it's the fastest way to get through."

Before he even finishes speaking they turn a corner, heading straight into the mouth of a tunnel. It's easily wide enough for the van and that's about all Kris can tell in the sudden gloom, though Jongdae's flipped on all the lights, inside and out. There are grilles set in the walls, covering ventilation shafts, and the ground beneath their wheels is more or less even - without hairpin bends. This is probably safer than driving outside, Kris thinks, but he can't help feeling uneasy. There's not enough room to turn around and there's no way Jongdae could safely reverse all the way out, even if he wanted to. If there's been a cave-in anywhere along the way...

As it turns out, a cave-in is the least of their worries. The tunnel gradually opens out into a large cavern, filled with pipes and scaffolding, with ladders leading towards the roof and some semblance of daylight filtering down from a hole up above. The structure appears to continue to the surface and beyond, with dirty-looking walls forming buildings on the higher levels. That there's more light, only accentuates how dreary and dismal the wretched place is.

"I feel sorry for the people who used to work here," Jongin says. "I don't know how anyone could stand it."

"Perhaps they couldn't and that's why it closed?" Yixing suggests. "Though the chocobos don't seem to mind it. They're not making a peep."

Kris can't speak for the others, but he knows the only reason Ace would ever be quiet. "They think it's night so they've gone to sleep."

It's for the best. They can't do anything about the engine noise but it feels like they should be keeping as silent and still as possible, creeping through the cavern so as not to disturb the ghosts of the former factory workers. Mt. Nibel's interior is no less spooky than its exterior. It's not such a stretch to imagine creatures lurking in the shadows, only waiting for an opportunity to spring forth and pounce on them. Kris is glad they're not walking.

Jongin alternates peering nervously between all the windows, watching out for trouble. He's skittish about surprises. Even Yixing looks mildly discomforted by their surroundings.

Jongdae never flinches, hands steady on the wheel as he navigates them through the mountain, and for a moment, Kris thinks they're going to make it out without a hitch.

That's when he spots the giant scorpion.

At least, that's what Kris _thinks_ it is. It could also be an undernourished dragon with too many limbs, all of them long and tipped with pale, sharp pincers. Either way, it's scuttling straight towards them at a rapid pace and there's no way Jongdae's going to be able to run this one over.

He doesn't even try. He turns hard to the left, jostling the chocobos into waking up, but even their screeching coming from the back isn't loud enough to drown out the monster's approach, the clack of legs against the hard floor terrifying in such an enclosed space.

"Can we go around?" Jongin has to shout to make himself heard over the chocobos, gripping the front seat to keep from being slammed back into his own.

"It's too tight!" Jongdae yells back.

That doesn't stop him from trying, however, and everyone else grabs the nearest handle and hangs on for dear life as they get thrown about. Each move they make, the scorpion counters, using its greater width to block their path. Jongdae grits his teeth and takes them around, and around, and around again until Kris hears a scrape along his door. The monster's a giant blue and yellow blur through the windscreen: there's no way forward and reversing would be suicide in here.

"We're wedged in!" There's nothing for it but to fight. Loath though he is to leave the protective confines of the van, Kris reaches down the side for his sword, then realises his door's right up against the wall and he'd have to climb over Jongdae to get out. "Can anyone-"

He breaks off to look up as the scorpion taps the roof - gingerly, like it's trying to take the van's measure before cracking it open to reach the vulnerable humans (and chocobos) inside. It's close enough now that Kris can make out ridges of yellow spikes traversing its spine, all the way down to the tail undulating behind it. This thing's sharp all over. There are claws, not just pincers, thick and deadly and tipped with a murky red. Blood, maybe, or poison. One slams down into the ground by Jongdae's door and he recoils automatically, murmuring a hasty apology as he bangs into Kris's arm.

"We're dead if we step outside," Yixing says. "It's got more legs than we have."

"Then we'll have to do something about it from in here." Kris hasn't called on Baekhyun in a while, so he should be able to come out. Baekhyun's bright, blinding light would be welcome, too. The one they really don't want to call out is Kyungsoo, who could possibly bring the entire mountain down on them with the force of his attack.

Before he can reach his sword Jongdae already has his lance in hand, tilting his end up and letting the far end drag down the side of the seats so he doesn't whack Yixing in the face. There's not enough leeway to poke it out the window when he rolls it down but he tries nonetheless. "This seems as good a time as any to see what our new friend does. Zitao!"

A thunderous rumble stuns the chocobos into silence. The ground begins to shake; the van quivers on its wheels and the scorpion takes a cautious step back, scraping Jongdae's door as it goes. Kris hates to think what the exterior must look like by now. He cranes his neck to find the source of the noise, hoping it's not a full-blown earthquake.

It's not. It's _fire_.

Four tongues of bright yellow flame burst from the ground, providing markers for a shadowy circle that radiates out from a dark centre to encompass them all. A grey circle follows in its wake, with markings Kris can't make out etched into the surface, and rises, becoming a platform bordered by the four giant stone pillars which are forming behind the flames. With so much additional light the cavern might as well be entirely open to the air, but although it's better illuminated, it's no less haunting. The shadows have fewer places to hide, but they never disappear.

Not until an explosion of white light renders them all momentarily blind. It's almost as bright as Baekhyun's power, and Kris has after-images of towering pillars on the backs of his eyelids until the darkness returns, and with it, Zitao.

Kris almost misses him at first, thanks to the largely black clothing. Only his face stands out, sharp eyes and feathery blond hair, with light from the flames providing a glint of piercings beneath. His cloak, patterned with silver skulls, falls open to reveal black jeans and a chain-strewn leather vest over a white T-shirt as he raises his hands and cries out: " _Black Cauldron_!"

The platform cracks, a bubbling cauldron rising from the gap until it stands tall enough to reach Zitao's waist. It's not liquid inside the cauldron but _power_ , churning gold and pink as Zitao waves his hands over it, whipping the magic into a frenzy until it gushes towards the scorpion in a frothy pink wave of clouds. The beast retreats a few steps as the wave swamps it, beginning to raise its tail. Then it's completely engulfed. When the gaudy magical mess dissipates the monster glows a sickly green...but it's no longer moving.

Zitao waves his hands again and the pillars sink back into the ground, taking the platform and now-empty cauldron with them; the flames flicker once more before they, too, disappear, leaving behind one paralysed giant scorpion and one stylish-yet-cute Summon.

The scorpion's green glow gives Zitao an odd tint as he approaches the van. It takes nothing away from his looks - he's tall and slender, moving with easy grace over the uneven ground, nimble and surefooted as a cat. His bare, muscular arms suggest that although he doesn't wield a physical weapon the way Lu Han does, he's no stranger to action, even if he's got a face that belongs on a magazine cover somewhere.

Jongdae rolls the window all the way down to talk to him, and that's when Zitao shatters the supermodel illusion, giving them the grin of a little kid who's just managed to climb a tree and is enjoying sitting at the top, beaming proudly at everyone watching.

"I never get tired of doing that," he says. "Did you see the cauldron?"

"Couldn't miss it," Jongdae says. "Very flashy."

"But what does it do?" Jongin asks, plainly confused. "Did you just inflict a status ailment on that thing?"

Zitao peers through the window at him, then looks away, dismissive of anyone who can't properly appreciate his abilities. "I control Time, and I stopped it for him."

"So you did inflict Stop on it," Yixing says; Zitao pouts in response. "Yes, Jongin, it's a status ailment. Will it last?"

"Not forever," Zitao grudgingly admits. "So you guys should probably get moving before he drops back into normal time."

Jongdae looks past him at the path, face crinkling up in concentration as he tries to gauge how much space he's got to work with. "I think we can make it through, even if we lose a little paint." He winces, and Kris decides not to tell him about the scrape on the passenger side. There's only so much a man should have to deal with at once. "Are you coming in?"

Zitao points to the Summon materia shining in Jongdae's lance. "I'm already in. I'm also on shift with Baekhyun right now so it's kind of nice to talk to someone who's not doing impersonations of me. Call me out again soon, okay? I want to play with you some more."

He's gone before Kris even gets to ask him about Baekhyun's impersonations, leaving the paralysed scorpion behind him.

Jongdae rolls his window up again and sets his lance back down. "The sooner we get out of here, the sooner I can check out the damage. Everyone keep very, very still."

He steers them carefully past the monster, clearing it with less than a foot to spare, but they can't take the chance that knocking into it will somehow catapult it back into normal time. They're not that far from the exit, really. There's a lighter shade of gloom coming from the gap in the wall and as distressing as the scenery is outside, it'll be a relief to escape the mountain's interior. The scorpion looks far too large to follow them out.

They're almost there when the van stops, Jongdae peering in annoyance over the dashboard. Kris follows suit. There's a large yellow box blocking the exit, at least six feet across, standing too tall for them to drive over.

"Someone's going to have to get out and move it," Jongdae says. "And it's not going to be me, because I'm keeping the engine running."

Kris checks out the other windows. The scorpion's still motionless, and nothing else seems to have slunk inside to join them. He opens his door, beckoning Jongin to join him as he steps out. He reckons they can probably manage it between them. There's an awkward moment as they both make for the same end, but Jongin hastily retreats when he notices. The box is only a couple of feet tall; they have to crouch down to get a grip and when Kris works his fingers under the rim of the lid, he's startled by how easily it flies open, almost hitting them both in the face.

"Hey!" Jongin protests, but Kris stops listening to him the second he sees what's inside the long yellow box.

It's a broadsword, long and dark, with a wicked-looking crossguard of four sharp golden spikes that make Kris wonder if he could even pick it up without stabbing himself in the hand. He can't help reaching for it, though. It's slightly larger than his current sword - and that's mostly, he sees with delight, to allow for three pairs of linked materia slots. That's five more slots than he's got right now, and if they keep picking up materia, it would be useful to be able to equip them.

He looks across at Jongin. "Can you hold the lid open? I'm taking the sword."

Jongin frowns. "What if it belongs to someone and they decide to come looking for it?"

Jongdae honks the horn at them to stop dawdling, and Kris gives him a wave to indicate that yes, there's a good reason he's not hefting the box out of the way right this second. "Jongin, if they were that attached to it, I don't think they'd have left it lying abandoned inside a mountain."

Jongin concedes that Kris may have a point. He continues to look nervously about him but holds open the lid by himself so that Kris can remove the sword. Without its contents, the box is relatively light and Jongin's able to push it out of the van's path with just his grip on the lid. They climb back inside the van quickly, Jongin first. Kris slides his new acquisition down the side with the other weapons, intending to examine it properly when he finally has sufficient light to do so. Light and _time_ , both of which are in short supply as Jongdae flicks off the interior lights, no longer required as they exit the cavern.

"New toy?" Yixing enquires, running a hand over the sword's hilt. "I know your hands are big, Kris, but I'm not sure even you can handle two swords this size at once."

Jongdae snickers from the front but otherwise holds his tongue, concentrating on keeping them steady as they descend. The slope's not steep but the path twists and turns, and with stretches of green grass visible before them, they could do without a dangerous detour now.

"I could use the extra materia slots," Kris explains. "I've only got the one, and Baekhyun's taking it up by himself."

"If you'd like the second Baekhyun materia now-" Yixing begins, and Kris looks back over his shoulder with a warning glance because two Baekhyuns is probably more than anyone can realistically handle. Possibly better than two Lu Hans, though.

"I was hoping to use one of those extra slots to house our phoenix, when we catch up to him."

" _If_ Sehun will hand him over," Jongin says. "I don't know about you but I think I'd be pretty attached to the guy who brought me back from the dead."

"I'll worry about that when we get to Rocket Town," Kris says. He doesn't miss the way Jongdae's jaw clenches at the name of his hometown.


	2. Chapter 2

Jongdae's been re-evaluating his life choices every ten minutes or so since he first met Kris at the Gold Saucer, less than forty-eight hours ago. Chocobo racing's a good, profitable career - as long as you keep winning, and he knows he doesn't have much real competition. He could've stayed right where he was, taking Emperor across the finish line again and again, cementing his reputation as the best chocobo jockey in the business and building up his personal fortune with each victory. 

Instead, he's getting his precious new van all beaten up by driving a bunch of madmen halfway across the continent.

Except that he can't think of them as madmen, not when he'd thrown away that stable, perfect existence in order to join them, all after a single life-shattering dream. Hardly a mark of sanity, and he'd be a hypocrite to insist otherwise. He's one of them now. Apparently, he always has been. He's a believer in following your dreams but he never expected one would take him this far - had hoped, actually, that none of them ever would. Not back to Rocket Town, where all that awaits him is a painful reminder of one particular dream that never came true.

It's easier not to think about it as he takes them down the northern slope of Mt. Nibel. He can pretend he's merely the driver, hired to drop them off at their destination before returning to his own life on the other side of the mountains. This is just business.

Only it's not, and the glimpses he catches in the rearview mirror of Jongin muttering quietly to Lu Han - who isn't even there, physically, except in his materia orb - make it all too easy to remember that they're not alone in the van, and that there are more of them yet to be found. Jongdae could no more leave them at the outskirts of Rocket Town and drive away than he could roast Emperor for lunch. He's with them now until the bitter end, whatever that happens to be.

He's only vaguely aware of the conversation taking place around him as he drives. None of it is addressed to him and he's grateful not to have anyone asking questions he's in no frame of mind to answer. There are no further attacks either. The glowing eyes remain in the shadows of the mountain, never emerging to threaten them. At the foot of the slope the path continues through grassy plains and he knows it won't be much longer before Rocket Town becomes impossible to miss, the old, lumbering rocket towering over the town, visible for miles around.

One more turn and...there. There it is. They'll all see it now.

"What's that?" Kris asks, sounding more than a little startled as they head straight towards it.

Jongdae sighs, but this particular structure, at least, inspires no sadness in him. It's been the town's defining feature - and namesake - since long before he was born, and he's never bothered to enquire about the former name. He's not sure anyone even remembers. "A rocket," he says. "The first one the town ever tried to send up. It didn't get very far."

"Suho can't use that, can he?" Jongin asks.

Jongin's a sweet kid and even this early on, Jongdae knows how easily he embarrasses, so he keeps his laughter to himself, because Jongin has no way of knowing that the only direction that rusted hulk will travel in is down, as it tilts lower and lower until it reaches the ground. "It wasn't usable to start with." _Or after, and he knows because Youngwoo had examined the rocket thoroughly before rejecting it as a potential source of parts._ "The launch was a disaster; the rocket never made it off the ground and it's been stuck there ever since. It's practically the only thing you can see for miles around."

"You were there?" Yixing says, and Jongdae shakes his head.

"It was nearly fifty years ago. The technology's so old we couldn't even scrap it for parts."

"We?" Kris says, curiously.

Jongdae hastily covers his slip. "We, as in, Rocket Town. The people here have always been good with machinery, one way or another. Our engineers are responsible for half the Gold Saucer."

 _We. The people here. Our engineers._ Funny how easy it is to slide back into that feeling of belonging, of _home_. This isn't his home anymore. He doesn't want it to be. Home shouldn't be heavy with painful memories: another rocket launch, one he recalls as clear as if it had been only yesterday. Home should be warm and welcoming, a place of sanctuary. There's none of that here for him now.

Nevertheless, he takes them into town, parking the van in the small empty lot next to the shops. He doesn't think the rocket is likely to fall today, after holding up for almost half a century, but no point in taking chances. They don't have the time to be making repairs. It's getting late as it is. He's not about to take a plane out at night - they're going to have to stop here until morning. Suho, Sehun and the phoenix guy will have to stop too, wherever they are. It's too risky to fly in the dark, especially across the sea, where there's a danger of losing sight of land completely and eventually crashing into the water, drained of both fuel and hope.

He says as much to the others as he reaches for his door handle. Kris nods reluctantly, then asks about stabling the chocobos for the night.

There's a stable behind the Shanghai Inn, mostly used for chocobos belonging to the guests. There's not so much call for them in this town, where organic forms of transport are considered old-fashioned, somewhat quaint. A thing of the past. Here, the onus is on inventing mechanical means to do the same. Customised motorbikes. Aeroplanes that can soar over the mountains. Trains so fast that they whiz past in the blink of an eye, built to order for a company in Midgar. Jongdae's no inventor but he knows how to ride and drive - and how to fly a plane. Assuming anything remains for him to fly. Two years is an eternity when it comes to technology. It's possible the engineers here have advanced beyond his capability to pilot.

Possible...but then he spots a bright red buggy, parked around the corner. Suho's here, or has been - probably drove over Mt. Nibel, rather than through, unless he's the one who'd blocked the exit with a box. While it's good to have his theory confirmed, it does mean they can't just get back in the van and move on.

The others follow his gaze. By mutual silent agreement, they walk as one to examine it. The buggy's colourful paint is dulled by dust and sand, and scored by claw marks from things Jongdae would rather not think about. He knows the occupants can't have had an easy trip. He's seen the corpses.

"I don't suppose they're likely to still be here," Yixing says.

"Probably not," Jongdae agrees. "I can't tell without checking the hangars if they flew out or not."

The aircraft hangars stretch out behind the town. Jongdae had been in and out of them all the time as a kid, constantly getting underfoot, but in Rocket Town having an inquisitive nature was encouraged and the mechanics and pilots had been only too happy to answer his neverending list of questions. Even now, his license is still valid - no one here will let him get near a cockpit without proof that he's passed his exams and logged enough hours in the air that he can be trusted at the controls. He hasn't flown in two years. That's enough time to become rusty, but not so long that his hands will have forgotten what to do. It'll be all right.

It has to be. He's their only option, this time. 

"Nobody's going anywhere tonight," Jongdae says. "Why don't you guys head into the inn and get us and the chocobos somewhere to sleep, and I'll see what I can find out about the professor?"

When Yixing offers to keep him company, he accepts immediately. Having someone with him, he thinks, will make him feel less like he's being sucked back in. He's with a stranger, so he's visiting, not staying. They arrange to meet at the inn later, and Jongdae happily leaves Jongin and Kris to deal with four desperate-to-stretch-their-legs chocobos. They'll be lucky not to have a stampede on their hands.

There's a small office near the hangars. No one gets to fly anything without submitting the correct paperwork and Jongdae knows the filing cabinets have more than a few examples of his handwriting. He hopes someone's manning it at the moment, or he'll have to track them down to learn about Suho. He doesn't like how quiet it is around here. It's too late for anyone to be flying, but there's usually mechanics working all sorts of hours and the noise should be audible from here.

"It's more peaceful than I was expecting," Yixing says as they approach the office. "From what you said before, I thought the noise would be deafening."

"Not quite that bad, but it should be louder than this." Jongdae casts a glance over the area. The streetlamps are just beginning to come to life, shining down on the handful of people walking around - heading home from work, or going out for the evening. The town's far from dead, which is a relief given what the rest have told him about what happened in Junon and other places. It's simply...subdued. Lacking something.

But then, it's been lacking something - or rather, _someone_ \- for two years.

"A lot of things can change in two years," Yixing says. "I'm sure you have."

"Probably," Jongdae says. He knows he has. "So what were you doing, two years ago?"

His question is offhand and he doesn't expect a serious answer, but Yixing doesn't sound like he's joking when he says: "Volunteering at a clinic back in Mideel and trying to write the perfect song to share my feelings with the girl I loved."

Jongdae hasn't heard anything about a girl. He assumes she's not still in the picture, because Yixing strikes him as the kind of guy who'd want to be with his loved ones as the end of the world approaches - maybe holding his girl's hand and stroking her hair as everything turns red, or perhaps singing her sweetly into sleep so she doesn't have to see what's coming. It's what Jongdae would want to do, if he'd had anyone's hand to take.

But all in all, he thinks it's not so bad like this. If they fail, at least they'll all be together. He's not alone anymore. Two years of winning at the Gold Saucer has brought him plenty of fans and fairweather friends, the kind who won't stick around if he loses more than the occasional race, and even a few people he'll miss, like his manager Ester and Billy the stableboy. Close friends, however...well, he has no idea where Youngwoo is now, if Youngwoo is even anywhere at all.

"A clinic? You have actual medical training?" Jongdae asks.

Yixing smiles, deepening the dimples in his cheeks. "Not much more than emergency treatment. Mostly I helped care for the patients, especially the elderly ones."

"I bet they all loved you."

"I like to think I made things a little better for them." His light, gentle voice turns pensive for a moment. "But sometimes there's nothing anyone can do."

That, Jongdae understands only too well. 

The shutter hasn't been pulled down over the glass office door yet, confirming that it's still occupied. Jongdae hesitates, fingers hovering over the door handle, knowing he might be about to meet someone from his former life - someone who knows the eager young pilot, not the fighter who shot lightning from his hands in another world. He sucks in a deep breath, as if he can inhale the essence of Rocket Town and hold it in his lungs, letting it transform him into his self from two years ago, from _before..._

A hand on his shoulder drags him back to the present before his mind can lose itself in the past. It's just Yixing, waiting for him to pull himself together and open the door.

"Would you like me to go first?" Yixing offers. "Or I could call Minseok out. Everybody likes him."

Jongdae's startled into a laugh, and a little of his tension leaves him with the expelled air. He can't be who he was before - not in this life, not in a previous life. He can only be himself, as he is now, for as long as he can. Certainly, if he can't walk through that door, it won't matter who he is, or who he isn't, because he won't be around to worry about it. No one will.

He shakes his head and reaches for the door handle again. Although the door is largely made of glass, two large panes in a wooden frame, he can't see anyone inside. The small, cluttered desk is empty, but the door to the storage room behind is open, so whoever's on duty is probably busy in the back with the filing cabinets. With Yixing following closely, Jongdae enters the office, forgetting that the bell rings whenever the front door is opened to alert anyone inside.

The bell does its work, and an auburn head pops out from the storage room. It doesn't belong to any of the people Jongdae had considered likely to see here. Shera's a scientist, after all. She works with the machines, not the people - or she had, back then, when Jongdae would show up after his shift at the materia shop and find her side by side with Youngwoo, tools in hand, striving to ready the rocket for launch. 

"Shera!"

"Chen?" 

Shera's big hazel eyes widen behind her glasses. She's changed little, hair still tied loosely behind her, and as she emerges fully from the back room Jongdae can see her fondness for brown and yellow clothing is still very much intact. All that's missing is the long white lab coat...and the light in her eyes.

Jongdae's been 'Chen' for most of his life, yet answering to it now feels false, somehow. As a caterpillar emerges from its chrysalis in a new guise, so Chen has become Jongdae. Only, this butterfly doesn't have his wings yet. He'll see about those now.

"It's 'Jongdae' now, but yeah, it's me." He takes a few steps forward. He hasn't hugged Shera since the morning he'd left town, a bag of clothing thrown over his shoulder and Youngwoo's lance in his hand. He's not sure how she'd take it now so he holds himself back, waiting to see what she does. 

Shera seems to be doing the same, venturing up to the desk but no further. From this distance, he can see how tired she is, with shadows under her eyes that her glasses can't quite hide. They've been there since the launch.

"Jongdae?" she repeats. "Is that your new jockey name?"

It's easier to agree than to explain that it's not a new name but an old one. "All the professionals have them," he says lightly, conscious of Yixing's lacklustre attempts to hide a smirk behind his hand. "Been following my career?"

Shera casts her eyes down, not looking at him as she nods. "I knew you'd end up riding something, and when your order came through for a van, I saw the name and thought I'd investigate. I didn't know where you'd gone until then." Jongdae's listening hard but there's no resentment there, no veiled ire at how he ran away and left her to deal with her grief alone. He'd been the only person who'd even have come close to sharing her feelings and he'd run so he didn't have to face them. His own had been bad enough. "You must be doing well for yourself."

"It's a living. The van's great," Jongdae adds. "I came back in it, actually."

"You can't need a service already?"

That's entirely possible, given where they've been driving, but not what they're here for. "Not yet." Maybe not ever, if they don't make it to the tree in time. "Are you...how are you...what are you..." He can talk easily to a woman asking him to autograph her bra, yet he can't ask after the welfare of one he's known since childhood.

Shera spreads her hands out to the corners of the office. "What am I doing here? Is that what you were trying for? I'm here, _Jongdae_ , because there's nothing left for me to work on."

Yixing finally speaks up. "Nothing?"

Shera flushes, and Jongdae hurriedly introduces them. "Shera, this is my friend Yixing. We travelled together from the Gold Saucer. Yixing, this is Shera. She's...an old friend."

"Nice to meet you," Yixing says, bowing low.

"Nice to meet you," Shera says in turn, with an incline of her head. "Welcome to what's left of Rocket Town, Yixing."

She might as well be discussing the weather, for all the emotion in her voice. Jongdae can't keep it out of his, however, almost shouting: "What's left!"

"Have you forgotten how loud it used to be here? Did you notice anything missing on your way in? Noise? People? Machines? All gone." Shera flings one arm wide. 

"Shera, please." Jongdae begins to reach for her hand, then stops himself. " _Please_. You're not making sense."

"The people took the machines, so the noise has gone," Yixing says helpfully. "I think that's what she means."

"All of them?"

Shera purses her lips, considering for a long moment while Jongdae's heart starts a gymnastic routine in his chest. "Not quite all, or I wouldn't even need to be here. No one would, unless it was to record them coming back, and no one's ever coming back."

"Just because Youngwoo-"

"Youngwoo's dead," Shera cuts Jongdae off. "You know it and I know it and we should be with him. He was never planning on coming back but all of these people," she picks up a set of papers, flipping through the pages like a deck of cards, "had every intention of it. Everything that's gone overseas for the past week has never made it back. I could understand one plane going down, maybe two, but we've lost almost everything and we're out of pilots, and I can't reach anyone to ask them what's happening."

"Shera, were those planes going east?" Jongdae asks.

She nods. "All scheduled weeks ago. Cargo plane taking a new batch of bikes to Midgar. One hired to transport a load of medical supplies from Junon down to Mideel. There were more like that. Why? Do you know what might have happened to them?"

The red force hasn't made it here yet. The sky is clear; the air, unusually free from fumes, does not dry his mouth. Will Shera even understand if Jongdae tries to tell her? He hasn't even seen it himself. 

But Yixing has, and when he opens his mouth, Jongdae thinks this is it, that Yixing will explain and he'll be saved from being the bearer of bad news. Yixing does no such thing, however. "The eastern continent's in quarantine," he says. "I was on the last ship to leave, before they started to enforce the ban on travel. Anyone landing there wouldn't have been allowed to leave, so no one's been able to warn you not to let the planes up. The disease might even have spread by now, I don't know."

It's complete nonsense. Plausible-sounding nonsense, though, and a lot more likely, so Jongdae thinks, than a mysterious red fog that sucks the life from those unlucky enough to be caught. 

"Quarantine? Oh dear." Shera removes her glasses, rubbing at imaginary smears with the edge of her sleeve. "But the communications!"

"Also locked down," Yixing says, glancing at Jongdae as if to say _don't contradict me_. "There were problems with riots, I heard. I hope your pilots will be all right, but they won't be allowed anywhere near their planes at the moment."

Shera sets her glasses back down on her nose. "I suppose I could have let those two last night take _Tiny Bronco_ out after all. They were heading north, not east."

That has to be Suho and Sehun. "One short guy with dark hair, and a taller guy with a giant shuriken?" Jongdae checks, and when Shera nods, he follows it up with: "Are they still here?"

"You know them?" Shera asks.

"We're trying to find them," Yixing says. "Do you know where they are?"

"Probably freezing to death in a snowfield somewhere," Shera says. " _If_ they made it up there at all. I didn't believe them when they said they could fly the plane, and they didn't have a license or any other proof with them. We're out of pilots anyway so I told them they'd have to wait until someone came back, and the last I saw of them they were headed to the inn." She sighs. "When I woke up this morning, the hangar was empty. I can't believe no one heard them taking off."

They're too late. Suho's already left, flown north to find the tree. "Was that the last plane?" Jongdae asks, urgency roughening his usually smooth voice. _Please say no please say no please say no..._

"Yes," Shera confirms. "That was the last one. The only thing we've got left that'll fly is...well, the _Highwind_. And there's nobody still here but me who knows how to get her off the ground."

That's not completely true. The _Highwind_ , the one and only airship Rocket Town has ever produced, had been commissioned by some political big-shot from Midgar almost four years ago. He'd been assassinated before completing his payments, and as his successor had refused to pick up the bill, the airship had never been sent over, remaining the property of Rocket Town. Being so large and vastly overpowered for most of the bookings that came in, it had seen little use.

Of course, Jongdae had been fascinated. A ship of such size, power and speed...it could dominate the sky, easily, putting smaller vessels to shame. One might almost escape the atmosphere altogether in such a craft. Shera, five years his senior, had been leading the project team working on the engines, while Youngwoo had been assisting with the navigational controls. Jongdae had never seen them so excited by their work, not until the idea of travelling into space had seized hold of them - of all three of them, to be precise - and airships had paled when compared to rockets. 

But rockets will do them no good where they want to go. An airship, however, would be just the ticket.

"I can fly the _Highwind_ ," Jongdae says quietly. 

"You can," Shera says, "but you're not going to. She's staying right where she is. You can stay or go; I don't much care which."

Jongdae probably doesn't have anything to go back to, though he can't tell Shera that. It doesn't sound like she'd be receptive to the idea of him taking the _Highwind_ up. He could go behind her back, but...

No. He won't do that to her. He can justify Yixing's story, because she'd only be terrified if he told her the truth and there's nothing she can do to help, anyway, but he'll not run out on her again. At least he'd said goodbye, last time. There's no way they could get the airship in the sky without her finding out - he'd love to know how Suho and Sehun managed with _Tiny Bronco_ \- and he doesn't want the last thing he sees on this continent to be Shera's furious face as he leaves the ground.

"Please," he says. "We're not heading east. Our friends went north and we have to catch up to them. It's important."

"Because it's important to be with your friends," Shera says, and Jongdae winces. "Always. What's the matter? Are you running away again?"

 _Not this time._ "I'm finally running _towards_ something," Jongdae says. "I promise I'll bring the airship back. Please, Shera."

Something in his face or voice must reach her, because she sags into a perch on the edge of the desk, crumpling papers beneath her. "What's up north?"

Jongdae hesitates for a moment, half-expecting Yixing to jump in with something about a miracle cure for the disease afflicting the eastern continent, but no stories are forthcoming. "It's important," he repeats, more stubbornly this time. "I can't...I can't explain why, I'm sorry. It's something I have to do."

"The way Youngwoo had to go?"

"Yeah." Jongdae gulps down a mouthful of sadness and tries to speak without choking on his own regret. Shera's already had this done to her once. She hadn't deserved it then, and she doesn't deserve it now, but he's doing the same thing Youngwoo did - keeping her out, for her own good. Shera and Jongdae both. And now Jongdae's the one doing the leaving. "I know it doesn't help now, but I'm so-"

"I know," Shera breaks in. "You weren't the only one who wanted to leave. Do you think I wanted to stay here and be reminded of him every time I used one of our tools, or looked through our notes, or slept in our bed? I could've run too. But if I'd left, the town's space programme would've died completely...along with my hope."

"You know he can't still be alive up there," Jongdae says gently. "You've said as much yourself."

"The me of two years ago refused to acknowledge that, and clung to the hope that perhaps the next time we sent someone up, they'd be able to find him and bring him back. I don't...I don't believe that's possible anymore." 

If Jongdae had stayed, and there had been another rocket, perhaps he would've been its pilot, the way he should've been before - flying with Shera beyond the confines of the planet in search of Youngwoo. Instead he'd walked away from everyone and everything he'd ever known, hoping that if he only moved fast enough, he'd be able to outrun his emotions. But it's impossible to outrun that which you carry with you, and Jongdae's grief, and anger, and guilt...he'd carried them all in Youngwoo's lance, weighing it down far more than the equipped Bolt materia ever could.

"I made my peace with being left behind," Shera finishes. "By both of you. I put my life back together all by myself. But I think you're still working on it."

"You have _no_ idea." Jongdae's got more than one life to put together, but maybe that'll never happen. He's not sure that even if they save the tree, anyone's survival will be guaranteed. The prophecy makes no mention of it. But if these are his final days, he wants to at least do the best he can by his friends. "I'm trying," he says, "but I've got larger problems than my own to worry about right now. Like you."

"Hey!"

"Ah, not like that, sorry." Jongdae rubs the back of his neck awkwardly. "Shera, does your cousin still live in Wutai?"

"She does. Why?"

"Because I think now might be a good time to go for a visit. Take one of the motorboats out on a trailer, drive to the west coast, and go. Just...just for a while." He can't think of anywhere further west, and Wutai might hold out another few days. Whatever's going to happen...will probably have happened by then.

Shera's eyes take on a watery sheen behind her glasses, and Jongdae knows she understands. "Maybe there are others in town who could use a holiday," she says shakily. "All of them, even. We've got a cruise ship that's supposed to be delivered to Costa del Sol next week and enough power to haul it to the coast."

"Definitely don't take it to Costa del Sol," Yixing says. "I don't advise going east."

"I'm sorry, Shera," Jongdae says. He came here to borrow a plane, not make the whole town evacuate. Wutai must be getting pretty crowded with all the refugees fleeing west as the red mist moves in.

"Don't be." Shera stands up, blinking the hints of moisture from her eyes. "You won't be able to leave until daylight. I'll round up the crews to get the _Highwind_ refuelled and supplied, and see what I can do about mobilising people."

"Can we help?" Jongdae offers.

"Go help yourself by getting familiar with the controls again," Shera says. "She's in number six." She tosses him an electronic keycard. "I'll see you in the morning."

A dismissal if ever Jongdae heard one. He tries to thank Shera but she's already moving, ushering them towards the door so she can get to work. She's always been happiest when she's busy, and woe betide anyone getting in her way. He looks towards the hangars until Yixing taps his arm.

"We should let the others know, and you need to not do _anything_ for a bit," Yixing counsels. "We can go look at the airship after you've sat down and had something to eat."

It's good advice. Jongdae's tired from all the driving, fingers sore where he's held them stiffly in position during the harrowing journey through Mt. Nibel. A break would not go amiss. Five minutes where he can keep from wondering if he's doing the right thing, and if he shouldn't be rounding up everyone in town onto the airship so they can try to find somewhere safe.

"You're right," he says. "I think I'd better keep out of Shera's way for a while, anyway. I have to stop doing things that ruin her life."

"It sounds like you weren't the first." Yixing takes a few steps in the wrong direction; Jongdae steers him back towards the inn and they begin to walk. "Who was Youngwoo?"

"My best friend. Shera's boyfriend. She was older than us, but even as kids, we were always together." It's not as painful as Jongdae expects, thinking back. Not now he's spoken to Shera. "As soon as we were old enough, we got caught up in Rocket Town's industry. Shera wanted her own team of engineers, and Youngwoo wanted nothing more than to work by her side."

"And you? What did you want?"

"I couldn't keep up with them in the labs or the workshops, but outside..." Jongdae grins, recalling with intense fondness the many times he'd been called upon to take some shiny new vehicle for a spin. How powerful he'd felt behind the wheel of a truck, or in the cockpit of an aeroplane. "They got their licenses too, but I always had to try everything first. So when the town started up its space programme again, and they built the first new rocket we'd had in decades, I had to learn to fly that too."

"I'm guessing you didn't get the chance to take it up?"

"Good guess." Jongdae's grin fades. "The rocket would take three; I was supposed to be the captain. Me, Youngwoo and Shera, we were going to make history together. Find out what was out there and transmit pictures back to town, that was the plan. But the morning of the launch..." He stops, the words sticking in his throat.

"The morning of the launch?" Yixing prompts softly. He's not pushy about it, and Jongdae knows if the story stopped right there, Yixing wouldn't try to force the words from him. 

"The launch was set for ten. We were supposed to be there three hours before, preparing. Youngwoo probably was. Shera and I weren't. He'd given us sleeping draughts - in our drinks, I think - so we'd oversleep. By the time we made it to the launch pad, the rocket was almost out of sight and Youngwoo was long gone. I don't...I don't even know if he survived the take-off, or what happened to him after that. They must've checked the comms before take-off but no one on the ground was ever able to contact him, and he didn't send anything back."

Jongdae thinks, now, that might've been for the best. Because if they'd had any form of communication with the rocket, he might've been tempted to hash it out with Youngwoo, probably with an audience, and Shera standing lifeless by his side. How it had hurt! He hadn't known, watching the rocket's journey towards the stars, why they'd been left behind. Couldn't understand why his best friend had betrayed them both, putting a cruel end to their shared dreams. 

"He'd planned it all. Told the rest of the team to keep it from us, that he was going up alone. They gave us his parting message, afterwards. Turns out he wasn't being selfish and trying to hog all the glory for himself."

"I doubt you'd have been such good friends if he'd been that kind of person," Yixing says. 

"Oh, he had his moments," Jongdae assures him. "But that wasn't one of them. He was the only one of us willing to acknowledge what we all knew but couldn't admit - that it was essentially a suicide mission. We'd practised with simulators but we had such limited data to work with that the odds of us being able to return in one piece were incredibly low. Our data would get back - but we wouldn't. So he took it upon himself to go up, taking the choice out of our hands. Like we didn't know, or wouldn't have gone with him anyway."

"That lance you carry is his, isn't it?" Yixing asks. "You did say a friend left it to you."

Jongdae nods. "It was in his room, with a note leaving it to me. There was an envelope for Shera, too. It didn't take long for me to realise I was going to suffocate if I stayed here, with the two of us looking at each other and remembering, so..."

"You left," Yixing finishes for him. 

"I left. I guess I wasn't much of a friend to Shera after all, was I?" Jongdae doesn't even manage to fool himself with his attempt to sound off-hand.

"You were a friend to her just now," Yixing says.

That helps, a little. If they both survive whatever's coming, there will be other chances to make amends. But for now there are other friends who need his help.

They meet up with Jongin and Kris at the Shanghai Inn, where it emerges that Jongdae will be sharing with Jongin again. It should be a peaceful night, unless Lu Han decides to pay them a visit. Jongdae gives them a quick summary of the situation, omitting his personal connection to Shera, and Yixing stays silent on the subject, only breaking in to ask about the chocobos. There are stalls aboard the airship for them - news that has Kris relieved about Ace - and when he goes, after dinner, to see how preparations are getting on, he'll ensure supplies are taken on for the chocobos too.

They might need them, where they're going. The _Highwind_ is over seven hundred feet long and requires plenty of open, flat ground for a landing site. If the tree is up a hill, or in the middle of a forest, or even on a particularly narrow strip of land, they'll have to park as close as they can and ride the rest of the way. They should be able to spot the _Tiny Bronco_ from the air, he thinks. Though the plane is as small as its name suggests, if it's still painted the garish salmon pink he remembers, it'll stand out easily whether in the sky or on the ground.

Maybe Suho and the others will have reached the tree by now, if it's really there. Maybe they've still got a long way to go. Wherever they are, Jongdae will find them. Tomorrow will be his first flight in two years.

It may also be his last.


	3. Chapter 3

Jongin and early mornings are not the best of friends. They're not even passing acquaintances, as far as he's concerned. But they are, unfortunately, an inevitable consequence of life on the road - or rather, life in the skies, because the road has fallen away beneath them and despite having practically sleepwalked his way onto the airship, there's no way he could've slept through the take-off. The engine noise alone guaranteed that.

He hugs the railing running through the centre of the bridge, knees bent, swaying with the _Highwind_ 's movements as he watches the sky lighten through the larged curved window at the front of the ship. Jongdae's busy at a work station near the window; he's managed to get them in the air, so Jongin hopes that means he knows what he's doing. Kris is at another station on the left, and Yixing's down in the stables, making sure the chocobos are properly settled. None of the Summons are out - and Lu Han, especially, is not likely to put in an appearance. 

"Don't call me out unless it's a matter of life or death," Lu Han says in Jongin's mind. "Or so far below decks that I won't notice how high up we are."

"We're not even that high up." But Jongin knows, even as he says it, that Lu Han won't be convinced. He's seen what happens when Lu Han's in high places and it's not pretty. "Don't worry. I don't think anything's going to try to attack us in mid-air. And if it does, magical attacks would be more useful than your sword."

He receives a mental image of Lu Han pouting about his unsuitability for aerial battles and smiles to himself. He knows Lu Han would sooner endure the discomfort of being up high than let Jongin rely on someone else for protection. Jongin would rather save himself, but his fighting style doesn't lend itself to aerial battles either and he has no Magic materia. Jongdae, with his Bolt materia, would be the real advantage there, but he's busy flying the _Highwind_ and as no one else knows how, he's not moving from his workstation any time soon.

"I'm going up on deck for a while," Jongin says by way of a warning as he releases the railing and makes for the next room. "You should probably stay out of my head if you don't want to get dizzy."

"Just thinking about it is making me dizzy," Lu Han complains. "For once I wouldn't mind a little more distance between us."

"I could take off my gauntlets?" Jongin suggests. "That might help?"

It usually serves to widen the gap between them. Jongin can't hear Lu Han in his mind when he's not actually wearing them, though Lu Han is less hampered by it and seemingly able to delve into Jongin's thoughts as and when he pleases. Having been trapped in his own mind once during an unfortunate encounter with a Malboro, Jongin is aware that it possesses layers, and that Lu Han tends to communicate with him from the layer holding his surface thoughts. He's never sure quite how much Lu Han gleans from there, and how much he supplements it with knowledge of Jongin from _before_.

"Maybe," Lu Han says. "I do get less from you when you take them off."

That settles it. He's hardly going to get into a fight on the deck of an airship unless some extremely ambitious birds decide to take him on. He strips off his gauntlets, tying them to his belt for safekeeping, and hopes Lu Han's not paying too much attention to whatever sensations he's picking up through his materia orb.

Two flights of stairs later, Jongin's up on the _Highwind_ 's deck, leaning as far over the railing as he dares to watch the ground skim past below. They're flying north-east. The route takes them over empty green and brown plains, the open sea up ahead. Looking down at the sea is better than looking at the sky, which is slowly beginning to show hints of that terrible red. Not enough to dry the air, yet, and nowhere near enough that Jongin's worried about a storm hitting them; this is more like how things were in Midgar, when last he saw it. He doesn't want to think what it might be like now. Not with what's become of Junon, and Fort Condor, and...

Best not to dwell on it. Jongin lets himself get lost in the beautiful blue sea, occasionally talking to Jongdae via the intercom that connects him to the bridge, and then to Yixing when he comes up to get some air. Between them they keep an eye out for trouble. Jongdae had told them, over dinner, that the _Highwind_ had no weapons, and that evasive action on a vessel this size was rather more complicated than with the van so they would need all the early warning they could get.

When Kris comes up to join them, bringing drinks, he's got Jongdae's Bolt materia in one of the free slots of his new sword - just in case. Jongin hopes they have no cause to use it. Despite the tinted sky there are no monsters in sight, and between the three of them they'll definitely spot anything that tries to approach them.

It's soothing, their peaceful flight towards the northern continent, even with the noise of the engines rumbling from below. It's Jongin's first time travelling like this, sea below and clouds above, nothing to do but watch. No riding, no killing, no fighting for their lives. It's a pity he can't share the tranquility with Lu Han, but if Lu Han were on deck, he'd be anything but tranquil. 

That's the down side to having nothing else to occupy his thoughts right now. Jongin's at liberty to ponder on what might happen when all twelve of them are together, and what it would ultimately mean for them all. He's never had this many friends before. Never had so many people counting on him, so many people he can count on in return - even if they live in separate worlds. He wonders if they'll all end up together, when it's all over, the way they used to be in the past, when he and Lu Han knew they could have more than a few precious hours together at a time.

He can't picture his life without Lu Han now. Wouldn't want to, even. They're learning more about each other all the time - not always positive things, but Jongin welcomes those too, even when they make him upset or angry. Or jealous, which is an emotion he's still not used to feeling. Not about a person. Fortunately, Lu Han's high school crush on Minseok doesn't appear to have persisted, and all Jongin's ever seen between them is an easygoing friendship. He supposes it could be different, back in their world where he can't see, but he thinks it to be unlikely.

After all, Minseok's not the one wearing Lu Han's collar.

Pleasant thoughts see Jongin through the first two hours in the air, helped along by the occasional nudge from Kris when he starts drooping sleepily over the railing. "I'm awake," Jongin mumbles each time, and Kris just smirks and bats the back of his head.

He's awake enough to spot the downed _Tiny Bronco_ , though. The salmon pink plane is an ugly splash of colour in an otherwise gorgeous sea - hideous and unmissable. It's too far ahead for him to tell if there are any occupants, yet; all he can see is sun glinting off a wing. He shouts for the others to come look as he makes for the intercom.

"I see it," Jongdae says when Jongin calls down. "Everyone grab the railing; I'm changing course."

The airship turns before Jongdae even finishes speaking. Kris slides on the deck, arm still stretched out towards the rail as he lands on his knees. Yixing keeps his feet, seizing Jongin around the waist to stabilise him, and Jongin gasps out his thanks when Yixing's arm withdraws, the _Highwind_ now sailing smoothly towards the plane. They're gradually slowing down. Jongin keeps his eyes fixed on the plane as they approach, scanning for survivors. 

Kris picks himself up from the deck and shades his eyes with his hand, looking out across the sea. "I think there's something moving in there."

"Some _one_ ," Yixing says. "Unless you think the plane's been taken over by sea creatures."

Not taken over, maybe, but it appears to have had a rough time since leaving Rocket Town. The broken remains of two snapped propellers are visible above the waterline - though the missing pieces seem to have found a new purpose as paddles. As the _Highwind_ draws nearer, Jongin can make out two figures crammed into the tiny cockpit, each paddling on one side with their makeshift oars. They're not going anywhere fast, and when they notice the airship overhead, they stop moving altogether.

Even though the airship is slowly reducing its altitude, it's still too high up to give Jongin a proper look at the occupants of the plane. One has dark hair, and carries a large blue packpack on his shoulders. The other is taller, with messy, light brown hair and a giant shuriken strapped to his back. That can only be the mysterious Sehun. Watching them craning up, Jongin wants to wave down, but he can't even see their faces and they're probably alarmed by the sudden appearance of a much larger vessel.

The airship stops when it's almost directly above _Tiny Bronco_ , and Jongdae's voice comes over the intercom: "I can't take us down much lower than this. You'll find rope ladders in the lockers up there. I hope you guys are good at tying knots."

Jongin's only good at tying _himself_ in knots, but fortunately, when they locate the ladders, they turn out to have metal fasteners that can be attached to the railings, no knots required. They let the ladder tumble down loose over the side of the airship. It's just about long enough to reach, but the two below make no move to grab it.

"They have no idea who we are," Jongin says. "I don't know if they've seen us in dreams, but even if they have, they can't see us up here."

"Someone's going to have to climb down and talk to them," Kris says.

"Not you," Yixing says. "Your eyebrows alone will scare them away." Kris scowls, proving Yixing's point before he realises what he's doing and straightens his expression. "Jongin should go. He's strong enough to help them up if they need it and he looks innocent enough not to terrify them on sight."

"Um...thanks, I guess?" Jongin's not keen on the idea of climbing all that way down, but Yixing does have a point. A point, but no helpful suggestions on what Jongin might say to their new _old_ acquaintances. Talking to strangers is hard enough under normal circumstances, and these are not even remotely normal - though he might have to rethink his definition of 'normal', now that the world is in danger of being wiped out by a strange red force.

If he stops to think about it, he won't move at all, so he clutches the ladder and swings his legs over the railing. His feet find the wooden rungs; once he's sure of his grip, he begins the slow, careful descent towards the plane. He doesn't want to look down at the water below. Midgar's slums don't offer much in the way of safe places to learn to swim, and the only reason Jongin has any experience at all is because Lu Han had made a point of teaching him a little in Junon. (He'd figured if he ever got into serious trouble in the water, he could just float until Lu Han inevitably popped out and towed him to safety. Or teleport. Either way, he didn't have to become a champion swimmer.)

Jongin's almost at the foot of the ladder when he finally allows himself to peek at what's beneath him. Lots of hideous salmon pink...and then, if he twists around to the right, a head. Suho, or whatever his real name is. He has a pleasant, if not terribly distinctive face. Jongin doesn't recognise him at all. 

And then another head pops into view. _Sehun_. He's standing up in the cockpit now, close enough for Jongin to kick, if he wanted. Under the brown hair is a young, lean face that's _almost_ familiar, with narrow eyes and a sharp chin, and when Sehun looks up and says "Jongin!", Jongin sees a flash of blond, and promptly falls off the ladder.

*****

"Of course my powers are cooler than yours," Sehun says, whipping a nearby cluster of leaves into a miniature tornado with a wave of his fingers. "You can only move yourself. I can move anything I want."

"Yeah, but you can't make it stop without letting it fall," Jongin retorts, teleporting mid-sentence to avoid the tornado crashing into his leg. "All you do is blow it around. Lu Han has total control over everything he moves."

Sehun gives him a sly grin, letting the wind drop so that the leaves fall to the ground in a heap. "Including you. Or did you think I wouldn't notice the collar?"

Occasionally Jongin wonders why he and Sehun are such good friends, because Sehun never passes up an opportunity to needle him, and sometimes Jongin's too flustered to think of a comeback until hours later, when it won't be of any use. They bicker over the most pointless things and know each other's worst faults well enough to capitalise on them. But as the two youngest members of the group, they're often required to hold their own against their elders when training, and that's when they become a formidable team indeed. 

"It's none of your business." Jongin lowers his eyes, knowing that if he meets Sehun's, he's only going to get teased. Everyone knows he's with Lu Han. It's no secret, and they're all friends here. The exact nature of their relationship, however, is not one that he cares to discuss with Sehun - or anyone else, for that matter. 

"Maybe you can settle down and raise a nice litter of puppies together when all this is over?" Sehun suggests.

Jongin tries to pretend the thought holds no appeal for him and doesn't make him feel the least bit warm and fuzzy. He knows he's failed when Sehun laughs at him, though not in a malicious way. While Sehun may be an unashamed brat, he's also got a heart as big as Yixing's, even if he tries to hide it away half the time.

"You don't have to wait for the puppies, you know."

"I...what?" Jongin risks looking up, hoping to see something in Sehun's face that will tell him whether or not he's being made fun of.

He finds only warm, dark eyes, partially obscured by blond bangs in need of a cut. "Puppies. When I went into town this morning to get groceries, the baker told me her poodle's due to give birth soon, and they'll need to find homes for the pups. I knew you liked dogs, so I told her I'd talk to you and see if you were interested. How about it?"

 _Oh yeah_ , Jongin thinks. So _that's_ why he and Sehun are such good friends.

*****

Jongin stares up muzzily into Sehun's face and wonders why Sehun is now above him, looking down at him with concern. 

"Is he bleeding?" a harried, unfamiliar voice asks from somewhere behind Jongin's aching head.

Sehun runs a quick hand through Jongin's hair, gently turning his head from side to side as he checks for the presence of blood. "Not that I can see. And his eyes are okay."

"Why shouldn't they be?" Jongin mumbles, finding it unexpectedly difficult to produce words in any sort of meaningful order. His brain's not normally _this_ scrambled in the face of strangers.

"You hit your head on a wing when you fell in the water," Sehun says. "Why do you think you're dripping all over my boots?"

Jongin blinks water from his lashes down an already damp face, and realises he's completely drenched. His shirt's sticking to his skin, sending drips trickling down his back and into his equally soaked trousers, and he's _freezing_. There's not enough room in the cockpit for him to lie down - they've got him propped awkwardly on one of the seats - and Sehun's beside him, water streaming down his bare arms and large damp patches on his charcoal tank top. 

"Sorry," Jongin says, embarrassed not only that has he had to be rescued from the water, but that his rescuer is now wet and in discomfort because of him. Sehun shouldn't have had to do anything. Lu Han's usually so quick to respond whenever he notices that Jongin's in distress, and almost drowning certainly counts. Perhaps he didn't pick it up because Jongin's harder to read when he's not actually wearing his gauntlets? Jongin reaches for them, not relishing the thought of donning soaked leather but willing to bear with the cold squishiness if it means being able to hear Lu Han in his head again.

His fingers find only a torn belt loop.

Already chilled from his brief immersion in the sea, Jongin freezes entirely, icy fingers of dread crawling along his skin and tearing it open to get at his heart. Lu Han is gone. _Lu Han is gone_. 

"What's wrong? Jongin?" Sehun's voice filters through a haze of despair, coming to Jongin from far away. It's not important. Jongin doesn't need to listen. He has to get up. He has to-

"Jongin!" Sehun shakes him by the shoulders, more insistent this time. "Are you hurt somewhere?"

The movement only worsens Jongin's headache, a dull pounding somewhere over his left ear. Gritting his teeth against the pain, he struggles to sit up straight so he can see more of the cockpit. His eye catches on Sehun's ridiculously short brown shorts, which come to a halt miles above the tops of his lace-up knee-high boots. More than Sehun's hair colour has changed since Jongin knew him before. But Sehun doesn't have Jongin's gauntlets, and they're not on the floor of the cockpit either, not that he can see.

Maybe they're behind him. He starts to turn, breath catching in his chest as the panic tightens its grip on him. _What if they're not here? What if they came loose in the water? What if-_

"Calm down," the other voice says soothingly, nudging Jongin back against the seat with a light touch to his shoulder. "Jongin, you're with friends. Do you remember us? I'm Joonmyun, and that's Sehun."

 _Joonmyun_. That must be Suho's real name. 

"Of course he remembers me," Sehun says. "I'm unforgettable."

"You are," Joonmyun agrees, sounding resigned, "but that won't mean much if he doesn't know anything about us." He turns kind eyes on Jongin, and for a moment, Jongin feels his despair lift, all his worries halved by a smile that seems to be offering to share his burden. 

But only for a moment. "Lu Han," Jongin says miserably. "He's gone." 

"Where?" Sehun looks up at the _Highwind_ above. 

"Lu Han's the one with telekinesis, isn't he?" Joonmyun says. "Did he come with you on that airship?"

Jongin has no idea how much Sehun and Joonmyun know about all this and he can't bring himself to care. They're confused. So is he. He's also desperate. "Yes, and he's _gone_!" He bites down on his lower lip to keep back a sob. 

"Gone where?" Sehun tries again. He squeezes in beside Jongin on the seat, ignoring the waterlogged fabric. "Where was he?"

"In...um..." Jongin hunts around inside his aching head for words. It feels so empty in there now. Even though Lu Han's not constantly speaking to him that way, just the potential for it is usually enough to make Jongin feel comfortable, and safe. "Materia. Like..." He points to Sehun's giant shuriken, which is propped up against the controls. Curved yellow spikes set around a large gold circle give it the appearance of a blazing sun, and in the centre, in one of the two paired materia slots, is a shining red Summon materia, twinned with a smoky blue Support materia.

"Ah, you have him as a Summon," Joonmyun says, putting two and two together. "I've never been able to lay my hands on any of his orbs, but I've heard of him, of course. Do you have him equipped?"

"In...in my gauntlets," Jongin says. It's an effort to keep his teeth from chattering. He knows he needs to get out of his wet clothes, get himself dried off and warm somewhere inside the airship. Only, he's not sure he can climb back up the ladder like this. If he had his gauntlets, he could teleport back up, but...Lu Han...

Sehun's eyes follow Jongin's fingers as they pat his belt. "I saw them while you were climbing down," he says. "They must've come loose while you were in the water." He leans over the side to take a look. "I don't see anything floating."

Sunk, then. Much like Jongin's hope, which has burrowed deep in the pit of his stomach and is pulling everything in after itself.

"What do they look like?" Joonmyun asks, standing up. Jongin wonders if he means to dive in and look.

"Brown leather, studded with mythril. I have...I have Lu Han in one, and Kyungsoo in the other. Your Kyungsoo, actually."

Joonmyun smiles sheepishly. "I'm glad you found him. I didn't mean to leave him behind but we left in such a hurry..." He takes a dark blue ring from a chain around his neck and slides it on his right index finger. "Let's see if this will help."

He holds his hand out over the side of the plane, palm parallel to the water and supreme serenity written all over his face. It's as if he's daring the sea to challenge his control, and Jongin doesn't like to risk screwing with his concentration to ask him what he's doing.

Jongin leans as far over towards Joonmyun as he can without interrupting so he can watch, not daring to dream that this will somehow lead to the retrieval of his gauntlets. He curls his fingers around the damp leather of his collar and waits, anxiety sending his lungs burrowing after his stomach into that awful place where hope curls itself into a tiny ball in the darkness and waits to be crushed out of existence altogether. He's been with Lu Han for so long, between one life and the next - what's he supposed to do if Joonmyun can't find his gauntlets? The odds of him finding another Lu Han materia where they're going are not good, even if Lu Han is able to tell them, via one of the other Summons, where he thinks he might be.

But Jongin wants _his_ Lu Han. Sure, they're all the same guy, but _his_ Lu Han is the one who saw him in the Honey Bee Inn, all those months ago, and arranged matters so Jongin could steal his materia orb from his current master. _His_ Lu Han is the one who's been beside him one way or another since the night they met, in Jongin's mind or out of it, lending him strength when he needs it and receiving it from him in turn. The one who gave Jongin the collar he now wears, and does so gladly, because it's a symbol of the bond between them - a Summon and his master, two friends, two lovers through two lifetimes. Though they don't always agree, and they've had their share of misunderstandings, there's nothing now, Jongin thinks, that can drive them apart. They've shared too much for that.

The aeroplane lurches without warning, knocking Sehun into Jongin's side. Joonmyun remains upright, outstretched hand starting to sway as a wave rises and falls with the motion of his ring. A stream of water shoots up directly in front of him; another follows, to his left, and then another, to his right. The choppy sea only makes Jongin feel worse. He presses himself as far into the seat as he can, but that's no help when they're so low, and so exposed. He has no idea what Joonmyun's doing. Whatever it is, he seems as likely to drown them all as find Jongin's gauntlets.

"Hope you don't get seasick," Sehun says. "That Water Ring can move the water around, but it's not exactly smooth."

Jongin can only manage a wordless whine in response, fearful that if he opens his mouth, words will not be the first thing out of it. He's forced to relinquish his grip on his collar to hold onto the seat with both hands. When he reaches for the seatbelt, Sehun stops him. If the plane flips, they don't want to be strapped in. 

"Can you climb up the ladder?" Sehun asks. "It's got to be safer than staying down here while Joonmyun turns the sea inside out." When Jongin shakes his head, Sehun doesn't press.

Water rises in sharp, unnaturally fast waves, shooting straight into the sky before crashing back down, soaking them all with icy spray. Throughout it all Joonmyun watches with an imperious gaze: each wave presents its bounty for his approval, and those found lacking are dismissed to make room for their brethren. Jongin sees fish, and coral, and broken husks of ships long-departed, but nothing of interest until...

"There!" Jongin shouts, scrambling to his feet, almost knocking Joonmyun over in his rush to the water.

At the crest of the wave, Jongin's gauntlets wait for him, still hooked together despite their rough ride. Joonmyun curls his fingers in towards his palm, drawing the shrinking wave closer to the plane until it's low enough not to swamp them, and close enough for Jongin to reach over and snatch his prize. He blurts out hasty thanks to Joonmyun, not wasting a second in drawing the gauntlets over his hands - the left one first, naturally.

The moment the leather brushes against his skin, calm settles on him like a blanket around his shoulders. This is right. This is _home_. Jongin takes a deep breath with lungs that finally work the way they should, and welcomes Lu Han's voice fighting its way through the pounding in his head to reach his heart.

"What was that!" Lu Han demands to know. "I've never had it that bad through materia before. I was so cold! And wet. And so are you. What happened?"

Jongin's never been so happy to hear someone else's voice. "We fell in the water. You fell further than I did." He prefers to speak aloud, but that can wait until he has Lu Han in front of him, so he responds mind-to-mind. There's really only one thing he has to say, anyway. "Can you...can you come out? I want to see you."

"Where are you? On the airship?"

Reluctantly, Jongin has to admit that no, he's not on the airship, and there's actually no room for Lu Han in the aeroplane's cramped cockpit. They need to climb back up the rope ladder. Everyone up above must be frantic by now, especially if they've seen the waves. He tells Lu Han to give him a few minutes, then turns to Joonmyun, who is waiting patiently for Jongin to stop staring blankly at the sea.

"I don't even know how to thank you," he says shyly. "You have...you have no idea what..."

"I don't, but Sehun does, and he's told me," Joonmyun says with an indulgent smile, and Jongin spares a thought to wonder what Sehun knows, how much he remembers. "Do you feel able to climb back up the ladder now? I think we've all had enough of this plane, don't you?"

"I don't have to," Jongin says, patting Lu Han's materia orb and grinning. "See you at the top."

\-----

By the time Sehun and Joonmyun have made their way up to the airship, Jongin is on the deck and being fussed over by Yixing, who insists on using Restore materia on his head. Jongin's not about to turn him down. He sags to the floor in relief, closing his eyes as the healing magic does its stuff, soothing the ache away. When he opens them again, Lu Han is sitting next to him, pointedly keeping his eyes on anything but the sky.

"You look uncomfortable," Jongin says.

Lu Han snorts, reaching out to pull Jongin down against his shoulder. "You look worse."

"You both look awful," Sehun says, throwing his bag and shuriken down on the deck so he can give Joonmyun a hand over the railing. "And so do I. Are there any cabins on this thing?"

There are, although Jongdae says he can't guarantee that any of them are usable - getting the airship properly fuelled had been a much higher priority than ensuring that all the cabins had clean bedding. Nevertheless, Jongin urgently needs to get himself dried off and changed, and Sehun and Joonmyun are also somewhat bedraggled. Everyone has questions - so many questions - but they have to wait. Yixing takes Sehun and Joonmyun off to find them some towels, waving away Kris's attempt to speak to them, and suggests that they all meet on the bridge in twenty minutes, since Jongdae's more or less stuck there until they land.

"Twenty minutes," Lu Han says, pulling them both up. "I hope you know where the cabins are."

Jongin tucks his arm through Lu Han's and leads him down the stairs, towards the cabin where he'd stashed his bag earlier - at least, where he _thinks_ he'd stashed it, having been half-asleep at the time. He manages to find it on the second try. A hot shower would be nice, but time is tight and it's warm below decks; he's no longer shivering, only keen to strip off his soaked clothing as soon as possible. 

Lu Han is equally keen to help. He finds towels in the passage cupboard while Jongin tugs his shirt over his head to drape over the back of a chair. Everything sticks to his skin; it's a relief to peel it all away. He leaves the gauntlets for last. He's not letting them out of his sight now.

"And the collar?" Lu Han says, spreading a towel on the bed so Jongin can sit without dripping all over the covers. "You should take that off and let it dry too."

Jongin doesn't count the collar as clothing to remove. It's a part of his identity, a comforting, familiar part that assures him that Lu Han is always with him, that Jongin belongs with Lu Han in a way he never has with anyone else.

But Lu Han's fingers set to work on the buckles, and Jongin makes no move to stop him, arms hanging limply at his sides as Lu Han removes the collar from his neck and sets it down to dry. Then Lu Han's hands are back on him, settling a fluffy blue towel around his shoulders before taking another to his hair. Water drips down his back where the towel fails to catch it. Jongin doesn't mind. Lu Han's standing in front of him, jeans and T-shirt making him overdressed in comparison to Jongin's collection of towels, and that alone is making Jongin feel so warm that all the seawater should be steaming away.

He tries to lean forwards, into Lu Han's chest; Lu Han only laughs gently at him and nudges him back into place. Jongin can't hear or see properly until there's no longer a towel being rubbed all over his head. When it's removed, he loses patience and reaches out, latching onto Lu Han so he can draw him close.

"I haven't finished drying you off yet," Lu Han protests, but he lets the towel fall from his hands willingly enough, wrapping them instead around Jongin's shoulders so Jongin can snuggle in under his chin. 

It should be more awkward than it is, given their respective states of dress. Jongin can't bring himself to care about the rub of denim against his bare legs, though. Lu Han is solid and warm in his arms, all the fantasies he's still learning to allow himself made flesh, and all _his_. He doesn't know how much of their twenty minutes they have remaining, but he's quite content to spend the rest just like this. 

"I thought I'd lost you," Jongin says, pulling back just enough to keep his words from being lost in Lu Han's shirt.

"I'd have found my way back to you," Lu Han says. "No matter how long it took. I've got the most orbs; sooner or later you'd be near enough to one of them for me to...well..."

He doesn't need to finish the sentence. At this point, Jongin's not sure if there's anything Lu Han wouldn't do to persuade another master to hand their orb over to Jongin. He can't use his sword on them. That doesn't mean they're in any way safe.

"What would've happened if you'd been out, and your orb was at the bottom of the sea somewhere?"

Lu Han rubs one hand soothingly between Jongin's shoulderblades. "I don't know. I'd probably have been pulled back into it once it got too far away from me. But I wouldn't have drowned, okay? Not unless I'd gone overboard in person, and I'm a better swimmer than you are."

"I could've swum," Jongin says. "Probably. But I hit my head when I fell off the ladder, and Sehun had to pull me from the water."

"Sehun." Lu Han sounds amused, and when Jongin looks up, he's smiling fondly. What does Lu Han know about Sehun to make him act like that, Jongin wonders?

"You remember him?"

"A little bit, though with a different hair colour. You were good friends, before."

"I got that, I think, when I saw him, and he definitely recognised me. He knew about you, too. I don't know how much Joonmyun - that's Suho - remembers, though."

"We'll find out soon enough," Lu Han says. "How about the phoenix guy?"

Jongin shakes his head, more to nuzzle against Lu Han than to answer his question. "There wasn't really time for the subject to come up. I'm pretty sure his materia's still in Sehun's shuriken."

"It'll be good to finally meet him. But..." Lu Han leans down to touch the tip of his nose to Jongin's. "You're not meeting anyone wearing nothing but a towel around your shoulders. No one else gets to see you like this."

"Only you," Jongin promises, tilting up to meet Lu Han's fierce grin with his lips.

One kiss is all they have time for but they stay close, Lu Han crouching down at Jongin's feet to towel off his legs, trailing teasing touches along his thighs while Jongin's fingers tangle in his hair. Jongin never wants to let go. He only does so, albeit with great reluctance, when he has to fish dry clothing from his bag and make himself fit for company. His gauntlets are still too wet to be comfortable. He picks up his belt, but it looks peculiar with the broken loop and in any case, it's wet too.

"You can borrow one of mine," Lu Han says, and Jongin knows he's passing one through to himself from his own world when, about half a minute later, a long strip of brown leather appears in his hands. "Try not to fall in the sea with this one, will you?"

Jongin accepts it gladly, fastening it around his waist before securing the gauntlets to one of the loops. After a moment's hesitation, he threads the collar through another. Even if he can't wear it yet, he wants it somewhere on him. He'll keep Lu Han with him any way he can.

He makes a grab for Lu Han's hand as they leave the cabin, ostensibly because he doesn't want to let him go, but they both know it's because Lu Han's going to be uncomfortable as soon as he sees the sky. (Jongin hadn't been anticipating spending much time in a cabin, but he'd deliberately chosen an interior one with no windows just in case.) Lu Han squeezes tight when they step onto the bridge, the large curved window behind Jongdae leaving no room for him to deny that they're high above the ground.

"Nice of you to join us," Baekhyun says, smirking when he catches sight of their linked hands. Lu Han pulls a face at him.

The others are there too: Zitao has a camera out and is trying to persuade Kris to snap pictures of him posing against the different workstations, with Yixing geting a laugh out of watching Kris's resistance crumble while Minseok appears to be getting flying lessons from Jongdae. Jongin quickly calls out Kyungsoo to join them. He materialises immediately behind Baekhyun with an evil gleam in his eye and one hand reaching for Baekhyun's neck. Baekhyun yelps in surprise and darts behind Kris, who looks less than impressed at being used as a human shield.

Only Sehun, Joonmyun and their mystery Summon are missing. Jongin's about to ask after them when Joonmyun appears, trailed by Sehun and a stranger who can only be the phoenix. He's as tall as Kris, or thereabouts, and casually dressed in jeans and an oversized hooded black sweatshirt, looking less mysterious than curious, eyes and mouth widening as he takes in the crowd before him. He seems harmless enough, but talking to new people is scary and Jongin's glad to have Lu Han beside him. 

Sehun and Joonmyun have both changed into dry clothing, Sehun now more appropriately dressed for air travel culminating in a landing on a continent half-covered in ice, as opposed to shorts that were probably shorter than anything Jongin had worn during his three months at the Honey Bee Inn - albeit perhaps not so flimsy. His shuriken's strapped over the shoulders of his jacket. The rest of them have their weapons too, with Jongdae's Bolt materia now back in his lance where it belongs.

Joonmyun's armed too. He has a holster strapped on over his white shirt, and Jongin can just see a pair of Magic materia peeking out from the grip of the pistol held inside. Will a gun be of any use against the red fog? Will any physical weapon? Jongin doesn't know. But if he had all the answers, they wouldn't be gathering here now to share information.

"I don't know what everyone remembers, so I think it's best to start with introductions," Joonmyun says. Although he's one of the shortest people there and softly spoken, his tone commands obedience, be it ever so gently. Like Jongin's first ballet teacher, who'd maintained absolute control over her unruly class of Sector 7 slum kids without ever having to shout at them. She hadn't let a caring disposition get in the way of business, and Jongin gets the feeling that Joonmyun works in the same way.

"Okay," Kris says, having manoeuvred himself up against a console so Baekhyun can't hide behind him anymore. "I'll start. I'm Kris from Wutai."

Sehun raises an eyebrow at this but doesn't comment. He's also from Wutai, as it turns out. Joonmyun's from Fort Condor; Yixing, from Mideel. The Summons are from places Jongin's never heard of, save in Lu Han's stories, and names like Balamb and Timber probably mean as little to the others from his world as they do to him. 

Finally, the unknown Summon steps forward, hands curled against his thighs as he bows to the group. "I'm-"

"Chanyeol," Kris interrupts. "You're Chanyeol."

Chanyeol's eyes light up. He's clearly overjoyed to be recognised. He has a childlike smile, Jongin thinks - innocent, full of warmth and life. Not like someone who'd left a trail of roasted corpses all the way across the continent.

"I thought you didn't remember his name?" Jongdae says.

Kris shrugs. "I didn't until just now. I saw his face, and..."


End file.
